Worcestershire County Council is holding a meeting to appoint a Leader of the Council, decide on political structures and appointments, and discuss reports from various committees. Councillors will also consider notices of motion and address questions.

Appointment of Leader of the Council

The council is being asked to appoint a Leader, who will be responsible for the council's executive functions. The report states that the Leader decides how those functions are to be discharged and the extent of delegation, appoints Cabinet members and allocates their areas of political responsibility.

The council retains the power to remove and replace the Leader at any time during their 4-year term by ordinary resolution on notice. The Leader chairs and appoints members to the Cabinet, and must appoint a Deputy Leader.

The Leader is not responsible for the discharge of functions which are not the responsibility of the executive, such as Planning Development Control, Audit and Governance, Overview and Scrutiny, Standards and Ethics, or the Budget and Policy Framework.

Political Structures and Appointments

The council will consider a report about establishing political structures and committees. This includes confirming the political structures established under the previous council, agreeing on the size and allocation of seats for ordinary committees and the Hereford and Worcester Fire and Rescue Authority, and appointing individual members to those committees.

The report recommends that the council authorises the Assistant Director for Legal and Governance, Hazel Best, to settle any outstanding details relating to the political structures and to make changes as necessary to the council's constitution.

No changes are proposed to the five standing committees: Planning and Regulatory, Pensions Committee, Standards and Ethics, Audit and Governance and Waste Credit Governance.

The Overview and Scrutiny Performance Board (OSPB) commissions work through itself, scrutiny task groups, or the standing Scrutiny Panels. The Health Overview and Scrutiny Committee (HOSC) also includes co-opted members from each District Council. The council has allocated the OSPB as the nominated body to deal with crime and disorder scrutiny matters, and the Environment Overview and Scrutiny Panel deals with the scrutiny of flood risk management.

Following the elections on 1 May 2025, the political groups are:

1. Reform UK (27 seats)
2. Conservative (12 seats)
3. Green and Independent Alliance (GAIA) Green and Independent Members)) (10 seats)
4. Liberal Democrat (6 seats)
5. Labour (2 seats)

The council will also make constitutional appointments, including chairmen and vice-chairmen of member bodies, and lead Scrutiny members. Nominations are set out in Appendix 2 to the report. The council is represented on a number of other bodies and external organisations, including the Local Government Association and associated bodies, and the Standing Advisory Council on Religious Education (SACRE).

The council is also scheduled to approve its programme of meetings for 2026/27.

Reports of Committees

The council will note the reports of the Audit and Governance Committee, the Pensions Committee, and the Planning and Regulatory Committee.

Audit and Governance Committee

The Audit and Governance Committee considered the Annual Governance Statement (AGS) 2024/25 Progress Report, the Monitoring of Savings Plan 2024/25 and emerging budget pressures for the Council, the Statutory Accounts 2024/25 Progress, Accounting Policies and Estimates, the Internal Audit and Counter Fraud Plan 2025/2026, the Internal Audit Progress Report, Internal Audit and the new Global Internal Audit Standards, the Adults and Communities (A&C) Directorate - January 2025 Debt Position Statement, Risk Management, and the Treasury Management Update Quarter 3 2024-25.

The report notes that the Senior Leadership Team and Chief Officers have been instructed to find alternative, achievable savings proposals where there are current gaps in delivery, and it is expected that there will be improvement in the savings position as we move through the remainder of the financial year.

The committee approved the accounting policies for 2024/25, and the Internal Audit Charter, Strategy and Counter Fraud and Annual Audit Plan 2025/2026.

The committee received an update on actions exceeding implementation date greater than 6 months which included: Blackminster Middle School – Blackminster Funding Account, and Imprest Account; The Forge School Secondary Short Stay School – Governors Declarations; St Anne’s CofE Primary School – Payroll Reconciliation, Imprest Accounts, Cyber Security, and Purchase Orders; and Evesham Nursery School - Register of interests for Nursery School staff, Documented Policy approval, Tenders, Purchase Orders, Contracts, Outstanding invoices, and Deficit outstanding.

As at 31 January 2025, the A&C Directorate’s debt headline figure has increased by £6.3m (since last reported in January 2024). The main reason for the variance is increased debt relating to Court of Protection and Deceased Client cases in the last 12 months – these debts are typically higher value and take longer to recover.

Pensions Committee

The Pensions Committee considered the Pension Board and Pension Investment Sub-Committee (PISC) Minutes, the Investment Strategy Statement (ISS) and Climate Change Risk Strategy Update, the Business Plan, the Governance and Compliance Update, the Risk Register, the Training Update, the Forward Plan, the Pension Fund Budget Forecast Outturn 2024/25 and updated indicative budgets 2025/26 to 2027/28, the LGPS Central (LGPSC) Limited Update, and the Pension Investment Update.

The report notes that the Fund held its third annual ESG Review workshop with Committee and Board members on 5 February 2025. The workshop was led by the Responsible Investment & Sustainability (RI&S) team at the LGPSC headquarters.

The committee approved the Good Governance Position Statement, the Governance Policy Statement, the Policy on Representation 2025, Policy on Conflicts of Interest 2025, Pension Administration Strategy 2025, Resignation and Termination Policy 2025, and Communications Strategy 2025.

The committee requested that an update on cyber security be provided in future iterations of the Business Plan.

Planning and Regulatory Committee

The Planning and Regulatory Committee approved a hybrid planning application for the erection of a secondary school, access points, access roads, sporting facilities, car parking and landscaping works and outline planning application for the erection of a multi-storey car park, associated surface level parking, internal road and landscaping with all matters reserved on land adjoining to Worcestershire Royal Hospital, Charles Hastings Way, Worcester, Worcestershire.

Notices of Motion

The council will consider two notices of motion.

Permit Hospital Overspill Parking at County Hall and install more Beryl Bike Bays

This motion, standing in the names of Councillor Andrew Cross, Councillor Louis Stephen, Councillor Alan Bailes, Councillor Martin Allen, Councillor Malcolm Victory, Councillor Tom Wells, Councillor Natalie McVey, Councillor Tor Pingree and Councillor Matt Jenkins, centres on the principle of allowing temporary overspill parking at County Hall for hospital workers, patients and visitors, to relieve traffic congestion at Worcestershire Royal Hospital.

The motion calls for the car parks at County Hall to be opened up immediately for use by hospital staff, patients and visitors for a limited time, and also calls for Worcestershire County Council to permit further Beryl Bike bays to be installed at County Hall.

Constitution

This motion, standing in the names of Councillor Matt Jenkins, Councillor Adam Kent, Councillor Dan Boatright-Greene, Councillor Mel Allcott, Councillor Karen May and Councillor Natalie McVey, proposes changes to the constitution to improve scrutiny within the council.

The motion proposes to amend ARTICLE 8 – OVERVIEW AND SCRUTINY ARRANGEMENTS, as follows:

• Increase the membership of OSPB to include the vice-chairs of the five O&S Panels listed below.

• Allow substitutes on the five O&S Panels listed below.

  • Adult Care and Well-Being Overview and Scrutiny Panel
  • Children and Families Overview and Scrutiny Panel
  • Economy Overview and Scrutiny Panel
  • Environment Overview and Scrutiny Panel
  • Corporate and Communities Overview and Scrutiny Panel

Question Time

Councillors will address questions to the Cabinet Member with Responsibility on the following topics:

• Highways involvement in parish council projects (Councillor Martin Allen)
• Climate Change (Councillor Matt Jenkins)
• No. 31 Bus Service in Worcester (Councillor Tor Pingree)
• Public meeting about flooding in Severn Stoke (Councillor Martin Allen)
• Funding for free school meals (Councillor Tor Pingree)